Chapter 20 of 44

Elsewhere

Airports, hotels, and the state of being somewhere other than here. Distance does most of the work; you only have to supply a reason for it.

31 verses

1. 1 I'm at an airport and the board has stopped updating Unverifiable
2. 2 My flight has moved twice and I've stopped believing the third time Unverifiable
3. 3 I'm on a plane that has been on the ground for an hour Unverifiable
4. 4 They've lost the bag with everything I need in it Plausible
5. 5 I'm in a country where this is the middle of the night Unverifiable
6. 6 I've worked out the time difference wrong in the direction that matters Unverifiable
7. 7 The hotel wifi requires a room number and I've checked out Unverifiable
8. 8 I'm somewhere with one bar of signal and I've been holding my arm up Unverifiable
9. 9 My connection was thirty minutes and the first leg was thirty-five late Plausible
10. 10 I've been in a passport line for fifty minutes and I'm not near the front Unverifiable
11. 11 The rental car people have given me something I can't drive Unverifiable
12. 12 I'm at a station where every board says the same unhelpful word Unverifiable
13. 13 The train I'm on has been renamed mid-journey Not reassuring
14. 14 I've got a hotel that has no record of the booking I'm holding Unverifiable
15. 15 The place I'm staying has a check-out I can't move and a check-in I can't reach Unverifiable
16. 16 I'm three hours from anywhere with a signal and I'm using somebody's phone Concerning
17. 17 I've been driving since four and I need to stop before I'm any use Unverifiable
18. 18 The road I need is closed for the season and nobody says which season Concerning
19. 19 I've arrived somewhere that isn't where the booking was Concerning
20. 20 The ferry didn't run and there is no other ferry Unverifiable
21. 21 I've got an early flight and it's the kind you can't miss Plausible
22. 22 I'm away that week and it's been booked since February Plausible
23. 23 I've just got back and I'm no use to anybody for a day Unverifiable
24. 24 I'm packing and I've discovered packing is the whole evening Plausible
25. 25 I have to be up at three for a car that won't wait Plausible
26. 26 We're driving up and back in a day and I need the evening before it Unverifiable
27. 27 Somebody is arriving tonight and I have to be at the house Unverifiable
28. 28 I've got people staying and I can't leave them in the house alone Unverifiable
29. 29 I'm picking somebody up from a station and the train keeps moving Unverifiable
30. 30 My passport has come back and something on it isn't right Not reassuring
31. 31 I've got a visa thing that has to be done in person and only on weekdays Unverifiable